Horus is also the father of the deities associated with the four cardinal points: Duamutef (east, stomach, jackal, under the protection of Neith); Hapi (south, lungs, baboon, under the protection of Nephthys); Imsety (north, liver, human, under the protection of Isis); and Debhsenuel (west, intestines, falcon, under the protection of Selket). The heads of Horus’s sons were sculpted in the round as lids for the four canopic jars, which held the stomach, lungs, liver, and intestines of the deceased.

Horus is depicted either as a falcon or as a human figure with a falcon’s head, characterized by a smooth head, distinctive eyes (symbolizing the sun and the moon), and a short, recognizable beak. He sometimes wears the double crown of Upper and Lower Egypt. Among the Greeks and Romans, the deity was known as Harpocrates, represented as a child with a finger on his lips and venerated as a protector against dangerous creatures.

Although very few sculptures of Horus have survived, the most famous and best-preserved example is in the Temple of Horus at Edfu, located between Aswan and Luxor. Construction of the temple began in 237 BCE under Ptolemy III and was completed in 57 BCE. It is said that the temple was built on the site where Seth and Horus fought their legendary battle. During this fight, Horus lost one of his eyes (the moon), which was later restored by Thoth and became a symbol of divine protection, known as the Udjat eye. The gods ultimately ruled in favor of Horus after a war that lasted eighty years, allowing him to unify Upper and Lower Egypt and become ruler of the entire kingdom. Carved from black granite, the monumental statue of Horus stands in the peristyle of the temple (BAROCAS C., Monumenten van grote culturen. Het Oude Egypte, Icob, Alphen aan den Rijn, 1979, p. 165). At the back of the sanctuary, a gold statue approximately 60 cm high was likely venerated. This statue was treated almost like a living being: a group of priests cared for it daily, providing food, entertainment, hygiene, and clothing.

The tomb of Nectanebo II is also located within the Temple of Edfu. This pharaoh reigned during the 30th Dynasty of the Late Period. Three sculptures (preserved in Paris, Lyon, and New York) depict the pharaoh under the divine protection of Horus. In these representations, Nectanebo stands between the paws of the falcon Horus, who wears the crown of Upper and Lower Egypt on his head (cf. ALDRED C., Egyptian Art in the Days of the Pharaohs 311-320 BC, Thames and Hudson, London, 1985, p. 237, fig. 196). The stylistic characteristics of the art from this period reflect refined craftsmanship, with elegant sculpting and high-quality polishing of hard granite.

The powerful eyes typical of the falcon, the flat head, and the abstract treatment of the feathers on the back of the long neck, as well as the geometric patterns on the cheeks, closely resemble those of this red-grey granite head of Horus, which dates to the same Late Period. The fragmented head, broken below the curved beak, conveys, through its advanced sculptural refinement, the image of a true « divine mask. »

This text is an English translation of a Dutch text by Axel Vervoordt.